Display apparatus

ABSTRACT

A display apparatus includes a chassis frame and a housing. The housing defines a storage compartment with an inlet and an outlet for storing a plurality of display envelopes in a substantially parallel configuration. Two endless drive belts are located over corresponding pairs of roller spaced away from each other at opposing ends of the chassis frame. The endless belts each have a silicon-coated bearings face and a corresponding undulating wave spring secured to the chassis frame for urging the bearing faces of the drive belt against the surface of a display envelope while located in the presentation area. The drive belts are operable to draw the display envelope along a predetermined trajectory through the presentation area and into the inlet of the storage compartment. Fluorescent lighting is mounted on the chassis for back-lighting a display envelope while positioned in the presentation area, and each envelope is fitted with leading and trailing hook formation to enable successive display envelopes to be drawn through the outlet of the storage compartment.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to an apparatus for the storage and displaying ofadvertising material and, more specifically, to an apparatus for thestorage and presentation of back-lit advertisement carriers. Theinvention extends to a system for facilitating billing of advertiserswhose advertising material is presented in the display apparatus.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Devices are known for the presentation of advertising posters withinpockets, consisting of two transparent flexible sheets joined togetherat their edges to form display envelopes. The display envelopes arestored in a chamber in a substantially parallel orientation and aredrawn individually from the storage chamber by a drive device to apresentation position where the display envelopes are back-lit anddisplayed for viewing, for a predetermined time period. The displayenvelope is then moved by the drive mechanism out of the presentationarea and returned to the storage compartment whilst a subsequent displayenvelope is moved into position in the presentation area.

Such devices are disclosed in PCT Patent Application No. 96/30888 andPCT Patent Application No. 93/04616.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,276,987 discloses a display system in which transparentimage-bearing sheets are transported through a viewing apparatus andpositioned in a backbit viewing window. The sheets are stored in acompartment behind the viewing window and are individually transportedfrom the storage compartment to the viewing window and back to thestorage compartment by a chain entrained on a pathway through thedisplay system. Each sheet is suspended in the storage compartment fromcorresponding rod which is engaged in the chain for transportation ofthe sheet to the viewing window.

PCT Patent Application WO 96/30888 relates to a similar display systemfor presenting advertising posters in a back-lit presentation area. Theposters are moved out of a storage compartment into the presentationarea and returned to the storage compartment by a drive mechanismconsisting of a motor-driven endless belt.

French Patent No. 2.717.602 teaches a display apparatus in whichadvertising posters are displayed sequentially in a presentation area.Each advertising poster may be displayed in the presentation area for apredetermined time determined by an identification code carried by theposter. The display apparatus includes a facility for reading anddecoding the identification code on each poster.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,389,993 relates to an apparatus for displaying any oneof a number of backdrops for use in a photographic studio. The backdropsare carried on a continuous roll, the ends of which are connected todifferent shafts. The shafts are motor driven to allow automatedscrolling of the different backdrops for display. Sensors are providedto detect the position of the continuous roll and a processor allowsautomated movement of the roll from one backdrop to another.

These patents disclose various mechanisms for drawing the displayenvelopes into the presentation area, such as tractor feed mechanisms orfriction based drives. A common problem with these prior art embodimentsis that they lack reliability and consequently do not provide sustainederror-free operation.

A further problem with advertising apparata of this type is difficultthat of providing accurate billing to advertisers due to the fact thatit is difficult to assess the amount of exposure given to anadvertiser's material on account of the unreliability of the devicesthemselves. Furthermore, it is difficult to provide the advertiser withan itemised account of the actual times that his advertising materialhas been displayed.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of this invention to provide a display apparatus and asystem for displaying advertising material which will, at leastpartially, alleviate the above-mentioned difficulties.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with this invention, there is provided a displayapparatus, including:

a chassis frame and a housing defining a storage compartment for storinga plurality of display envelopes in a substantially parallelconfiguration, the storage compartment having an inlet and an outlet;

drive means for drawing a display envelope along a predeterminedtrajectory through a presentation area and into the inlet of the storagecompartment;

lighting means for back-lighting the display envelope whilst positionedin the presentation area; and

engagement means for sequentially drawing successive display envelopesthrough the outlet of the storage compartment

characterised in that

the drive means Includes at least one endless drive belt locatable overa pair of rollers spaced away from each other at opposing ends of thechassis frame, the endless belt having a bearing face, and at least onespring secured to the chassis frame for urging the bearing face of theendless drive belt against the surface of the display envelope whilstlocated at least partially in the presentation area.

Further the invention provides for the at least one spring to be anundulating leaf spring, for the drive means to include two endless drivebelts in a parallel configuration arranged to bear on opposing ends ofthe display envelopes in a direction parallel to an intended directionof travel of the display envelope, for the bearing faces of the endlessdrive belts to be silicon-coated, for the drive means to include apressure equalisation assembly for equalising the pressure applied bythe bearing faces of the drive belts on the opposing ends of the displayenvelope, for the pressure equalisation assembly to be a cable securedto the chassis frame and connected at either end to a corresponding oneof the undulating leaf springs, and for the cable to be co-operable witha tensioner.

Still further features of the invention provide for the engagement meansto be hook formations located on operatively leading and trailing edges,respectively, of the display envelopes relative to the intendeddirection of travel, and for the trailing hook of a display envelope toengage the leading hook of an adjacent display envelope as it passesthrough the outlet of the storage compartment.

Yet further features of the invention provide for the display apparatusto include disengagement means for disengaging the leading and trailinghooks of successive display envelopes upon entry to the storagecompartment through the inlet thereof, for the disengagement means toinclude an elongate spring member of substantially arcuate cross sectionlocatable at the inlet to the storage compartment, the spring memberbeing adapted to deflect the display envelopes and to causedisengagement of the engaged leading and trailing hooks of successivedisplay envelopes.

Preferably, the storage compartment is curved In the vicinity of theoutlet to cause the leading edges of a plurality of display envelopes inthe storage compartment to be held in a fanned-out configuration, one ofthe rollers is driven by a motor, the motor is an electric motor, andthe lighting means is a plurality of fluorescent tubes located on anoperatively front wall of the storage compartment.

The invention extends to a display envelope for use with the displayapparatus described above, the display envelope including tworectangular sheets of a flexible transparent antistatic materialultrasonically welded together at opposing ends, and having a leadingand a trailing hook secured, respectively, to the welded ends of theenvelope.

The invention extends further to a system for displaying advertisingmaterial, comprising:

at least one display apparatus adapted to sequentially position aplurality of display envelopes containing the advertising material in apresentation area for a predetermined period of time, each displayenvelope bearing a unique identification code;

a reader for reading the unique identification code on a displayenvelope when it is positioned in the presentation area;

a real time clock: and

storage means for storing the unique identification code of each displayenvelope when it is positioned in the presentation area, and the lengthof time for which it is present in the presentation area.

There is also provided for the unique identification code to indicatethe identity of an advertiser whose advertising material is contained inthe display envelope, for the identification code to represent the timeperiod for which the display envelope is to be displayed in thepresentation area, for the identification code to be a bar code, and forthe reader to be a bar code scanner.

There is further provided for the display apparatus to include a soundfacility, for the unique identification code to selectively initiate theplaying of an advertising jingle through the sound facility when thedisplay envelope is positioned in the presentation area, and for thesound facility to be a speaker.

There is still further provided for the display apparatus to include acommunication bus for downloading the stored information to a billingfacility for preparing itemised bills for advertisers whose advertisingmaterial is displayed in the display apparatus, for the system toinclude a portable storage facility connectable to the communication busfor storing the downloaded information, the storage facility being, inturn, connectable to the billing facility for transferring thedownloaded information thereto, and for the billing facility to be acomputer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

One embodiment of the invention is described below, by way of exampleonly, and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a display apparatus according to theinvention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a display envelope for use in thedisplay apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a chassis frame of the display apparatusof FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional side view of the display apparatus of FIG. 1

FIG. 5 is a sectional elevation of the outlet portion of a storagecompartment of the display apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a sectional elevation of a number of display envelopes locatedin the storage compartment of the display apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 7a and 7 b represent two sequentially linked display envelopesentering the inlet of the storage compartment of the display apparatusof FIG. 1 and a mechanism for effecting their disengagement;

FIG. 8 is a truncated sectional view of a drive belt and leaf springsystem of the display apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a truncated sectional view of the drive belt of FIG. 8, shownin an exploded configuration;

FIG. 10 is an elevation of a pressure equalisation assembly of thedisplay apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 is a representation of a tensioner of the pressure equalisationassembly of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is a side view of the leading and trailing hooks of the displayenvelope of FIG. 2 shown in conjunction with the flexible sheets of thedisplay envelope.

FIGS. 13a to 13 e are sequential representations of engagement of theleading and trailing hooks of two sequential display envelopes at theoutlet of the storage compartment of the display apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 14 is a schematic representation of a system for displayingadvertising material including the display apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram of a billing facility for use with thesystem for displaying advertising material of FIG. 10; and

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a controller module of the displayapparatus of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 14, in which like features of the invention areindicated by like numerals, a display apparatus is indicated generallyby reference numeral (100).

The display apparatus (100) comprises a rectangular chassis frame (17)enclosed by a rectangular front cover (3) and a rectangular rear cover(1). The front cover (3) is hingedly connected at one end to the chassisframe (17) and is pivotable relative to the chassis to open operativelyupwardly when the display apparatus is in use. A bulkhead (2) is securedto the chassis frame (17) adjacent the front cover (3).

The front cover (3) has a rectangular opening (15) defining a displayposition for displaying advertising material therein as will bedescribed later. Lighting means in the form of fluorescent tubes (5) andassociated ballasts (4) are mounted on the bulkhead in alignment withthe presentation area (15) to provide back-lighting for advertisingmaterial presented in the presentation area.

The chassis frame (17), the bulkhead (2) and the rear cover (1) combineto define a storage compartment (101) for storing a plurality of displayenvelopes (102) therein. A display envelope (102) is illustrated ingreater detail in FIG. 2 of the accompanying drawings.

Drive means in the form of two endless drive belts (18) providepropulsion for drawing a presentation envelope (102) out of the storagecompartment (101) past the presentation area (15) on the front cover andback into the storage compartment (101). The storage compartment (101)has an outlet (103) shown in greater detail in FIG. 5 and an inlet (104)which is represented in greater detail in FIGS. 7a and 7 b.

The endless drive belts (18) are located over corresponding pairs ofrollers at opposing ends of the chassis frame (17) and are thereby notvisible through the presentation area (15) in the front cover of thedisplay apparatus (100). The endless drive belts (18) are driven by anelectric motor (14) acting on one of the rollers.

Referring now to FIGS. 8 and 9, the operatively inner surface (18 a) ofthe drive belt (18) is toothed whilst the operatively outer surfacethereof is coated with a layer of silicon (25) providing a bearing faceto the drive belt. Two undulating leaf springs (26) are secured to thechassis frame (17) and act on a drive belt backing plate (27) to causethe silicon bearing face (18 b) of the drive belt (18) to bear againstthe surface of a display envelope (102) which is located at leastpartially in the presentation area (15) of the display apparatus (100).

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that movement of thedrivebelts (18) will cause the display envelope (102) to move as well.In order to obtain a positive drive on the display envelope (102), theundulating leaf springs (26) must urge the drive belts (18) against thesurface of the display envelope with sufficient pressure to preventslippage of the silicon-coated bearing faces (18 b) of the drive beltsrelative to the display envelope.

It is also essential that both drive belts (18) apply equal pressure tothe display envelopes (102). In order to achieve this a pressureequalisation assembly is provided as indicated in FIG. 10. The pressureequalisation assembly comprises a cable (60) which is connected ateither end (61 a and 61 b) to a corresponding one of the undulating leafsprings (not shown). The cable (60) is secured to the frame (17) by twopulleys (62 a and 62 b) and passes through a tensioner (63) rotatablyfastened to the frame (17). The tensioner (63) has a slot (64) thereinto accommodate the cable (60). The tensioner (63) can be rotated toadjust the pressure applied to the display envelope (102) by the drivebelts (18) under action of the respective undulating leaf springs (26).

In order to provide for a continuous and seamless passage of displayenvelopes (102) through the display area (15), the display apparatus (1)includes engagement means for sequentially drawing successive displayenvelopes through the outlet (103) of the storage compartment (101). Theengagement means are hook formations (40 and 41) located, respectively,on the leading and trailing edges of each display envelope (102). Theleading and trailing hook formations (40 and 41) are adapted to causethe trailing hook of a display envelope to engage the leading hook of adifferent display envelope as it passes through the outlet (103) of thestorage compartment (101).

A sequential representation of the engagement of the leading andtrailing hooks (40 and 41) of two sequential display envelopes (102) atthe outlet (103) of the display apparatus (100) is shown in FIGS. 7a, 7b and 7 c. The leading hook (40) of a display envelope is held up by aflexible brush (10) at the outlet (103) of the display apparatus. Theimmediately preceding display envelope (102) is drawn outwardly throughthe outlet (103) until its trailing hook (41) engages the leading hook(40). The hooks (40 and 41) are shaped to cause an anal force to drawthem into closer engagement as shown in FIGS. 13d and 13 e. Once engagedin this manner, the force exerted by the drive belts (18) on thepreceding display envelope (102) draws the engaged hooks (40 and 41)through the resistance caused by the flexible brush (10), therebydrawing the succeeding envelope (102) through the outlet (103) of thestorage compartment (101).

The display apparatus (100) includes disengagement means (21) in theform of an elongate spring member of substantially arcuate cross-sectionlocated at the inlet (104) of the storage compartment (101). The springmember (21) is shaped to deflect adjacent display envelopes (102)entering the storage compartment, thereby facilitating disengagement ofthe engaged leading and trailing hooks (40 and 41) of the successivedisplay envelopes, as the leading display envelope is held up in thestorage compartment whilst the trailing display envelope is still drivenout of the display area under action of the drive means.

The display envelope (102) comprises two rectangular sheets (30 and 31)of a flexible transparent antistatic material which is ultrasonicallywelded together at opposing ends (33) thereof and which has the leadingand trailing hooks (40 and 41) secured, respectively, to the welded endsof the envelope.

In use, advertising material is placed between the top and bottom sheets(30 and 31) of a plurality of display envelopes (102). The displayenvelopes loaded in this manner are then inserted into the storagecompartment (101) of the display apparatus where they are held in asubstantially parallel configuration as indicated in FIG. 6. The storagecompartment is curved in the vicinity of its outlet (103) to cause theleading edges of the display envelopes (102) in the storage compartmentto be held in a fanned out configuration as represented in FIG. 5.

In order to prepare the apparatus (100) for use, a number of displayenvelopes are loaded into the storage compartment (101). With the frontcover of the display apparatus (100) in an open position, the leadingdisplay envelope (102) is drawn partway through the outlet (103) of thestorage compartment (101). The leading edge of this display envelope isfed between the drive belts (18) and the front cover, whereupon thefront cover of the display apparatus is closed and the motor (14)activated to transport the display envelope into the presentation area(15).

As the trailing hook (41) of the leading display envelope (102) exitsthe outlet (103) of the storage compartment (101), it engages theleading hook of an adjacent display envelope and draws this envelope outof the storage compartment and through the presentation area asdescribed above.

The leading display envelope (102) is transported by the endless drivebelts (18) through the inlet (104) of the storage compartment (101),drawing the succeeding display envelope behind it whereupon the leadingand trailing hooks (40 and 41) of these display envelopes are disengagedby the disengagement spring member (21).

The display apparatus (100) includes a programmable timer (110) whichcan be configured to selectively stop the electric motor (14) forpredetermined time intervals to enable the display envelopes (102) to beeach displayed in the presentation area (15) for desired time intervals.The display time interval is encoded on the display envelope and is readby an associated reader (22).

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the drivemechanism, the engagement and disengagement means and the tensioningsystem of the invention combine to increase the reliability of thedisplay apparatus (100) over prior art equivalents.

One or more of the display apparata (100) may be conveniently employedin a system to provide accurate billing information to advertisersaccording to the actual exposure provided to their respectiveadvertising material. Such a system is indicated in FIGS. 14 and 15.

In this embodiment, each display envelope (102) is marked with a uniqueidentification code (34) in the form of a bar code representing, interalia, the identity of the advertiser whose advertising material iscontained in the display envelope, as well as the time period for whichthe particular display envelope is to be displayed in the presentationarea (15).

The display apparatus (100) is equipped with a reader (22) in the form abar code scanner for scanning the bar code (34) on the display envelope(102) when it is positioned in the presentation area. The display unitis also equipped with a real time clock (110) powered by a battery(111).

In use, the bar code (34) on a display envelope (102) is scanned by thebar code scanner (22) when the display envelope is positioned in thepresentation area (15). The unique bar code is decoded to determine theidentity of the advertiser whose advertising material is contained inthe display envelope as well as the time period for which the displayenvelope is to be displayed in the presentation area. The electric motor(14) is deactivated to allow the required time of presentation to beexecuted, whereupon the advertiser's identity, as well as the date, timeand duration of the presentation of the advertiser's material is storedaway in a storage means such as random access memory (not shown).

Optionally, the display apparatus (100) may include a sound facilitysuch as a speaker, and for the unique bar code to enable the initiationof an advertising jingle played through the speaker when the displayenvelope (102) is positioned in the presentation area, thereby providinga multi-media facility.

It is envisaged that each display apparatus (100) in the system includesa communication bus (29) to enable downloading of the stored informationto a portable storage facility (32) which is connectable to a billingfacility such as a computer system represented generally by numeral(110) for transferring the download information thereto.

Numerous modifications are possible to this embodiment without departingfrom the scope of the invention. For example, the unique identificationcode may be contained in a semiconductor passive transponder chip whichis secured to a display envelope for reading by an associated reader.Further, the display apparata (100) of the system may be permanentlyconnected to the billing facility (110) by means of a communication bus(29) to facilitate the transfer of stored information thereto. Stillfurther, an audible alarm system consisting of a motion sensor and asiren may be included within the display apparatus (100) to deter theft.

The invention therefore provides a display apparatus for displayingadvertising material which possesses improved reliability over prior artequivalents and which facilitates the provision of itemised billinginformation to advertisers.

What is claimed is:
 1. A display apparatus (100), including: a chassisframe (17) and a housing defining a storage compartment (101) forstoring a plurality of display envelopes in a substantially parallelconfiguration, the storage compartment having an inlet (104) and anoutlet (103); drive means for drawing a display envelope (102) along apredetermined trajectory through a presentation area (15) and into theinlet of the storage compartment; lighting means (5) for back-lightingthe display envelope whilst positioned in the presentation area; andengagement means (40,41) for sequentially drawing successive displayenvelopes through the outlet of the storage compartment characterised inthat the drive means includes at least one endless drive belt (18)locatable over a pair of rollers spaced away from each other at opposingends of the chassis frame, the endless belt having a bearing face (25),and at least one undulating leaf spring (26) secured to the chassisframe for urging the bearing face of the endless drive belt against thesurface of the display envelope whilst located at least partially in thepresentation area.
 2. A display apparatus as claimed in claim 1 whichincludes two endless drive belts (18) in a parallel configurationarranged to bear on opposing ends of the display envelopes (102) in adirection parallel to an intended direction of travel of the displayenvelope.
 3. A display apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which thebearing faces (25) of the endless drive belts are silicon-coated.
 4. Adisplay apparatus as claimed in claim 2 which includes a pressureequalisafion assembly (60) for equalising the pressure applied by thebearing faces (25) of the drive belts (18) on the opposing ends of thedisplay envelope (102).
 5. A display apparatus as claimed in claim 4 inwhich the pressure equalisation assembly is a cable (60) securable tothe chassis frame (17), the cable being connected at either end (61 a,61b) to a corresponding one of the undulating leaf springs (26).
 6. Adisplay apparatus as claimed in claim 5 in which the cable (60) isco-operable with a tensioner (63).
 7. A display apparatus as claimed inclaim 1 in which the engagement means are hook formations (40,41)located on operatively leading and trailing edges, respectively, of thedisplay envelopes (102) relative to the intended direction of travel. 8.A display apparatus as claimed in claim 7 in which the trailing hook(41) of a display envelope (102) engages the leading hook (40) of anadjacent display envelope as it passes through the outlet (103) of thestorage compartment (101).
 9. A display apparatus as claimed in claim 8which includes disengagement means (21) for disengaging the leading andtrailing hooks (40,41) of successive display envelopes (102) upon entryto the storage compartment (101) through the inlet (104) thereof.
 10. Adisplay apparatus as claimed in claim 9 in which the disengagement means(21) is an elongate spring member (21) of substantially arcuate crosssection locatable at the inlet (104) to the storage compartment (101),the spring member being adapted to deflect the display envelopes (102)and to cause disengagement of the engaged leading and trailing hooks(40,41) of successive display envelopes.
 11. A display apparatus asclaimed in claim 1 in which the storage compartment (101) is curved inthe vicinity of the outlet (103) to cause the leading edges of aplurality of display envelopes (102) in the storage compartment to beheld in a fanned-out configuration.
 12. A display apparatus as claimedin claim 1 which one of the rollers is driven by a motor (14).
 13. Adisplay apparatus as claimed in claim 12 in which the motor (14) is anelectric motor.
 14. A display apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in whichthe lighting means is a plurality of fluorescent tubes (5) located on anoperatively front wall of the storage compartment (101).
 15. A displayenvelope (101) for use with a display apparatus (100) as claimed inclaim 1, including two rectangular sheets (30,31) of a flexibletransparent antistatic material ultrasonically welded together atopposing ends (33), and having a leading and a trailing hook (40,41)secured, respectively, to the welded ends of the envelope.
 16. A systemfor displaying advertising material, comprising: at least one displayapparatus (100) adapted to sequentially position a plurality of displayenvelopes (102) containing the advertising material in a presentationarea (15) for a predetermined period of time, each display envelopebearing a unique identification code (34); a reader (22) for reading theunique identification code on a display envelope when it is positionedin the presentation area; a real time clock (110); and storage means forstoring the unique identification code of each display envelope when itis positioned in the presentation area, and the length of time for whichit is present in the presentation area.
 17. A system as claimed in claim16 in which the unique identification code (34) indicates the identityof an advertiser whose advertising material is contained in the displayenvelope (102).
 18. A system as claimed in claim 16 in which theidentification code (34) represents the time period for which thedisplay envelope is to be displayed in the presentation area.
 19. Asystem as claimed in claim 17 in which the identification code (34) is abar code.
 20. A system as claimed in claim 19 in which the reader (22)is a bar code scanner.
 21. A system as claimed in claim 16 whichincludes a sound facility.
 22. A system as claimed in claim 21 in whichthe unique identification code (34) selectively initiates the playing ofan advertising jingle through the sound facility when the displayenvelope (102) is positioned in the presentation area.
 23. A system asclaimed in claim 21 in which the sound facility is a speaker.
 24. Asystem as claimed in claim 16 in which the display apparatus (100)includes a communication bus (29) for downloading the stored informationto a billing facility for preparing itemised bills for advertisers whoseadvertising material is displayed in the display apparatus.
 25. A systemas claimed in claim 24 which includes a portable storage facilityconnectable to the communication bus (29) for storing downloadedinformation.
 26. A system as claimed in claim 25 in which the storagefacility is connectable to the billing facility (110) for transferringthe downloaded information thereto.
 27. A system as claimed in claim 24in which the billing facility (110) is a computer.